* The main event is Kazuchika Okada vs. Bryan Danielson. I see no better option. Danielson is the best wrestler in AEW. Okada is the IWGP World Champion. You can have vignettes explaining who Okada is and why he’s so special. Regal can try and talk Danielson out of the match, because he doesn’t think Bryan can beat him and doesn’t want to see what it will do to his psyche. “You just told him what he needed to hear, right?” - Mox. But we don’t know. “I need to beat you, Okada. I need to beat you for any of this to matter to me.”
* I thought Tanahashi was still the US Champion. Oh well. Maybe there’s a tournament final and Tanahashi and Mox are the finalists. I think they’ve been teasing this match for a while, and it fits the drama of the World Title program if Mox walks away with the US Title earlier in the show.
* FTR defeat Tama Tonga & Tonga Loa to win the IWGP Tag Team Titles. I realize GoD aren’t currently champions, but I think it fits the overall context of the show better if they get them back for this. This match actually starts hot off the back of the previous match, which is…
* CM Punk defending the AEW World Championship against Jay White. Punk wins the belt from Page at Double or Nothing, who refuses to accept Punk’s hand and walks out on the company for a bit. White emerges as a challenger from New Japan who compares himself to Punk and said New Japan Pro-Wrestling made him a fan, and unlike Punk he didn’t run away to join the circus and then complain about it. White says he only agreed to work the show if he got the AEW World Title match and it wasn’t the main event, because he doesn’t see it as a main event title. And when he wins it, he’s going to take it back to Japan and make people come to him to challenge for it. He’ll do what Punk never actually did. Punk wins, but The Bullet Club beat down Punk afterwards, with KENTA hitting a GTS. FTR try and make the save. Wardlow comes down as a difference maker. White absconds with the physical AEW belt.
* LIJ defeat the Jericho Appreciation Society. Bushi is scheduled for the match, but is injured by the JAS on Dynamite or Rampage the week before. Naito needs a fifth guy to team with him, Shingo, Sanada and Takahashi. Enter Andrade. It may not seem like the best way to spotlight Shingo, but he gets the pin on Jericho here. Hager’s wife comes out as the Jericho Appreciation Bunny too.
* Kota Ibushi defeats Adam Cole. After the match, Cole goes to offer his hand to Ibushi, who accepts and gets low-blowed. This leads to the return of Kenny Omega, who dumps out Cole, milks being in the ring with Ibushi and embraces him.
* Will Ospreay defeats PAC. I had this for the NEVER Openweight Championship in my head for some reason. Hey, maybe PAC can go to Japan early and win it from EVIL and put it up against Ospreay?
* Hirooki Goto defeats Lance Archer. I guess Archer means something over there, and Goto is a guy that I think they’d like to get more out of if they could. So I put him over Archer here to give him something.
* Miro defends his TNT Title (which he wins back from Sammy ASAP) against Jeff Cobb. Just two bulls going at it. Cobb wins the belt here, but he doesn’t need to hold it long. Miro brings out his hot wife with him and frames this as USA vs. Japan. “God’s country, God’s Champion.” Just OTT presentation for Miro who loses.
* The House of Torture defeat The Gunn Club to retain the Six-Man Championship. Who would think Billy Gunn would be one of the best things about wrestling in 2022? Actually, I’m going to make this version of The Gunn Club Austin, Colt and…Christian Cage. Billy Gunn can beg, beg, beg Christian to be the mentor for his team. Maybe Billy can’t pass their piss test? I dunno. I’d like to see Christian leading The Ass Boys for a bit.
* The Young Bucks defeat reDRagon and two New Japan junior tag teams. Maybe Flying Tiger and Six or Nine, but whatever. This is just a popcorn match in that style. The Bucks win the belts here just so they don’t whine too much about being so low on the card. But this is their New Japan spot.
* El Desperado defends the Junior Heavyweight Title against two guys in a three-way match. I’m thinking Taiji Ishimori or El Phantasmo and Rey Fenix, if New Japan aren’t opposed to a AAA guy working the show.
* A New Japan Rumble either on the pre-show or to start off the card proper. This is where you put Suzuki, ZSJ, Taka Michinoku, Ishii, Great O-Khan, Toru Yano, Togi Makabe, Yuji Nagata, Kojima, etc. from Japan. Samoa Joe, The Hardys, etc. from AEW. Maybe a surprise appearance from MJF who initially says he’s not going to compete for some Japanese indy. Samoa Joe wins and challenges Okada afterwards.